Cutler out for Ravens game with high ankle sprain

Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler has a high ankle sprain and won't play Sunday against the Baltimore Ravens at Soldier Field, coach Marc Trestman said Monday.

Josh McCown will get the start against the Ravens. Cutler's playing status is being called "week-to-week," and Trestman said “it certainly won't be this week."

Cutler rolled his left ankle on the Bears’ final drive of the first half during Sunday's 21-19 home loss to the Lions. He continued to play on the ankle until the Bears took over for their final possession of the game with 2:22 left.

McCown came in to relieve Cutler and led the Bears on a 10-play, 74-yard touchdown drive, using his mobility to buy time and hitting Brandon Marshall for an 11-yard score with 40 seconds remaining.

Trestman defended his decision to start Cutler against Detroit despite the quarterback having been sidelined for three weeks with a groin tear. Trestman also said he was comfortable with Cutler continuing to play after injuring his ankle, though he did admit that in retrospect he might have made the move to play McCown a little earlier.

Cutler had his ankle rolled on with just less than 3 minutes left in the first half, absorbing a hit by linebacker Stephen Tulloch after firing a 12-yard completion to Alshon Jeffery. Cutler had the ankle taped at halftime and continued to play even as his mobility became more limited and his discomfort more obvious.

Trestman said he had “no regrets” about his handling of Cutler on Sunday. Asked what percentage Cutler has to be at to be better than a full-strength Josh McCown, Trestman paused.

“I can’t answer that,” Trestman said. “I can’t do it through mathematics. It’s just a feel thing. Are we moving the football team? The answer to that is yes. We were moving the football team. … He’s our starting quarterback. He’s our leader. It’s in the best interest of our football team, if he can move the team and not hurt himself or the team, we want him to be in there. And he wants to be in there.”

Trestman said the swelling in Cutler's sprained ankle was too severe to expect him to be ready to play against the Ravens. But he shrugged past the sharp criticism that’s mushroomed about his decision to keep Cutler in the game.

“As I evaluated it and learned from the trainers, there was no indication (the ankle) would get worse,” Trestman said. “I spent a lot of time watching. It’s very tough to pull your starting quarterback out when he’s throwing the ball with velocity, when he’s hitting his receivers, when he’s able to move in the pocket and complete a throwing motion. And all those three indications confirmed with me that I should keep him in there.

“And I know we sacrificed his ability to move around and run. But that was the case after (the injury occurred late) in the second quarter. So I feel good about what we decided to do with him.”

Cutler’s return now, however, remains iffy. Trestman insists it’s only Cutler’s ankle and not his previously injured groin that will cause him to it out Sunday’s game with the Ravens.